Tape printer

ABSTRACT

There is provided a tape printing apparatus in which a cartridge-ejecting function by an ejection mechanism and a cartridge-holding function by a cartridge compartment are separated from each other based on a simple construction. In the tape printing apparatus including a cartridge compartment for removably mounting a tape cartridge therein, and an ejection mechanism for lifting the tape cartridge mounted, from the cartridge compartment, the cartridge compartment has a bottom thereof formed with a seat portion for seating thereon the tape cartridge in a mounted state, and a lift plate of the ejection mechanism for lifting a tape cartridge is positioned away from the tape cartridge seated on the seat portion when the lift plate is in a standby state. This construction makes it possible to separate the cartridge-ejecting function implemented by the ejection mechanism and the cartridge-holding function by the cartridge compartment from each other, thereby preventing the ejection mechanism from adversely affecting printing operation.

TECHNICAL FIELD

This invention relates to a tape printing apparatus including anejection mechanism for lifting a mounted tape cartridge from a cartridgecompartment.

BACKGROUND ART

A tape printing apparatus including a conventional ejection mechanismhas been proposed e.g. in Japanese Laid-Open Patent Publication (Kokai)No. 9-277678. The ejection mechanism is comprised of an ejection plate(lift plate) for supporting a tape cartridge in a cartridge compartment,an X-shaped link for lifting and lowering the ejection plate, and aspring for causing the X-shaped link to operate.

In the apparatus, when a lid-opening button is depressed, a lid of thecartridge compartment is caused to pop up to be half opened. Then, whenthe lid is manually fully opened from this state by the user, theejection mechanism is unlocked, and the urging force of the springcauses the X-shaped link to operate to lift the ejection plate, wherebythe tape cartridge is lifted from the cartridge compartment.

Reversely, when a tape cartridge is placed on the lifted ejection plateand pushed deep into the cartridge compartment, the ejection plate islowered against the urging force of the spring and eventually locked,whereby the tape cartridge is properly mounted in the cartridgecompartment.

In the conventional tape printing apparatus, the ejection plate is atits uppermost position when a tape cartridge has been removed, so thatwhen a tape cartridge is mounted, it is required to push the tapecartridge deep into the cartridge compartment together with the ejectionplate, which makes the operation troublesome. Further, if the lid isclosed erroneously when the ejection plate is at its uppermost position,an inconvenience can occur that the lid is disassembled from theapparatus.

Further, while the ejection plate supports a tape cartridge thereon forprinting when it is at its lowermost position, the X-shaped linksupports the ejection plate. This tends to make the supported tapecartridge unstable as to a level state (levelness) and shaky due to thestructure of the ejection mechanism, which makes it difficult to printaccurately on a printing tape.

It is an object of the invention to provide a tape printing apparatus inwhich a cartridge-ejecting function by an ejection mechanism and acartridge-holding function by a cartridge compartment are separated fromeach other based on a simple construction.

DISCLOSURE OF INVENTION

According to claim 1 of the invention, a tape printing apparatusincluding a cartridge compartment for removably mounting a tapecartridge therein, and an ejection mechanism for lifting the tapecartridge mounted, from the cartridge compartment is characterized inthat the cartridge compartment has a bottom thereof formed with a seatportion for seating thereon the tape cartridge in a mounted state, and alift plate of the ejection mechanism for lifting a tape cartridge ispositioned away from the tape cartridge seated on the seat portion whenthe lift plate is in a standby state.

According to this construction, the lift plate of the ejection mechanismis positioned away from a tape cartridge seated on the seat portion whenit is in a standby state. Therefore, the tape cartridge is used forprinting in a state seated on the seat portion, and the lift platereceives the tape cartridge from the seat portion as it moves upward, tolift the same from the cartridge compartment. The seat portion isfixedly arranged, so that the tape cartridge seated on the seat portionis stably and accurately positioned for printing.

Preferably, the cartridge compartment has a support member arrangedtherein for holding the tape cartridge in a lifted state, and the liftplate immediately returns to its standby state after having been liftedto transfer the tape cartridge to the support member.

According to this construction, since the lift plate immediately returnsto its standby state after having lifted a tape cartridge, a new tapecartridge can be loaded without any consideration of the lift plate.Further, since the lifted cartridge is transferred to the supportmember, it is possible to hold the tape cartridge in the lifted stateeven after the lift plate has returned to its standby state.

Preferably, the support member also serves as a holding nail forimmovably holding the tape cartridge.

According to this construction, it is possible to use the holding nailserving as a support member, not only to immovably hold a tape cartridgeon the seat portion, but also to hold a lifted tape cartridge in thelifted state. Further, since the holding nail also serves as a supportmember, an increase in number of component parts is prevented.

Preferably, the seat portion is formed by three seat members arrangedseparately from each other.

According to this construction, the three-point support by the threeseat members makes it possible to hold a tape cartridge on the seatportion in a stable state without making the same shaky.

Preferably, the ejection mechanism comprises a lift plate for lifting atape cartridge, link means for causing translation of the lift platesuch that the lift plate can be lifted and lowered, and a motor foroperating the link means.

According to this construction, the ejection mechanism can be operatedautomatically. Therefore, the ejection mechanism is not required to beinterlocked with the lid of the cartridge compartment, or the like,which makes it possible to drive the ejection mechanism only whenrequired.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of an appearance of a tape printingapparatus according to an embodiment of the invention;

FIG. 2 is a plan view of a cartridge compartment (ejection mechanism) ofthe tape printing apparatus and component parts associated with thecartridge compartment;

FIG. 3 is a side view of the cartridge compartment (ejection mechanism)of the tape printing apparatus and component parts associated with thecartridge compartment;

FIG. 4 is a perspective view of the cartridge compartment (ejectionmechanism) of the tape printing apparatus and component parts associatedwith the cartridge compartment;

FIG. 5 is a perspective view of an ejection plate and a compartmentcasing;

FIG. 6 is a perspective view of a base frame and link means;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view of an automatic cutting mechanism andcomponent parts associated therewith;

FIG. 8 is a cross-sectional view of a tape cartridge in a state mountedin the compartment casing (cartridge compartment);

FIG. 9 is an enlarged sectional view of a holding nail and componentparts associated therewith, in a state of a tape cartridge beingcompletely mounted; and

FIG. 10 is an enlarged sectional view of the holding nail and thecomponent parts associated therewith, in a state of the tape cartridgebeing lifted.

BEST MODE OF CARRYING OUT THE INVENTION

The invention will now be described in detail with reference to thedrawings showing a tape printing apparatus according to an embodimentthereof. The tape printing apparatus is capable of printing desiredcharacters and figures on a strip of printing tape and cutting off aprinted portion of the printing tape. The cut-off piece of the printingtape is used as a label to be affixed to a document file or the like.That is, the tape printing apparatus makes a label printed withcharacters and figures from a strip of plain printing tape. In thiscase, the plain printing tape and an ink ribbon as consumable articlesare contained in a tape cartridge, and supplied to the apparatus via thetape cartridge.

Referring first to FIG. 1, the tape printing apparatus 1 has a body 2having an apparatus casing 3 comprised of upper and lower divisionalportions. The apparatus casing 3 has a key entry block 4 arranged in thefront portion thereof, a liquid crystal display 5 arranged in the rearright-hand portion thereof, and a cartridge compartment 7 formed in therear left-hand portion thereof, for mounting a tape cartridge 6 therein.The cartridge compartment 7 has a lid 8 formed with a window, the lid 8being attached to the body 2 in a manner such that the lid 8 can beopened and closed. Further, incorporated in the cartridge compartment 7is an ejection mechanism 9, described in detail hereinafter, for liftingthe received tape cartridge 6 up to a position allowing the same to beeasily taken out.

The apparatus casing 3 has a left side portion thereof formed with atape exit 10 for permitting the cartridge compartment 7 and the outsideof the apparatus 1 to communicate with each other, and a tape cutter 11for cutting off a dispensed portion of the printing tape faces the tapeexit 10 (see FIG. 4). The tape cutter 11 is linked to an automaticcutting mechanism 12, and operated by the automatic cutting mechanism toperform cutting operation. As described in detail hereinafter, theautomatic cutting mechanism 12 and the ejection mechanism 9 are drivenfor operation by an identical drive source.

In the cartridge compartment 7, there extend upright a print head 14covered with a head cover 13, a platen shaft 15 opposed to the printhead 14, a take-up reel 16 for taking up used part of the ink ribbon,and a guide projection 17 (see FIG. 3) for guiding the tape cartridge 6when it is mounted. A platen 18 is arranged in the tape cartridge 6 (seeFIGS. 1 and 4). Further, installed under the cartridge compartment 7 isa tape feed mechanism (not shown) for causing rotation of the platen 18and the take-up reel 16.

When a label is produced by using the tape printing apparatus 1, first,a lid-opening button 19 located near a corner of the lid 8 is depressedto cause the lid 8 to pop up, and then the lid 8 is manually fullyopened. Then, the tape cartridge 6 is pushed into the cartridgecompartment 7 from above for mounting. When the tape cartridge 6 ismounted, the lid 8 is closed to place the tape printing apparatus 1 in aprinting wait state. Then, input is carried out as desired by operatingthe key entry block 4 while viewing the liquid crystal display 5. Whenthe desired input can be confirmed on the liquid crystal display 5, thekey entry block 4 is further operated to issue a print command.

When the print command is issued, the printing tape and the ink ribboncontained in the tape cartridge 6 start to run simultaneously, andprinting is carried out on the printing tape as desired by the printhead 14. As the printing operation proceeds, a used portion of the inkribbon is taken up in the tape cartridge 6, while a printed portion ofthe printing tape is sent out of the apparatus via the tape exit 10.When the printing is completed, the printing tape is further fed by anamount corresponding to a margin, and then the running of the printingtape and the ink ribbon is stopped. Subsequently, the automatic cuttingmechanism 12 operates to cause cutting operation of the tape cutter 11,whereby the printed portion of the printing tape is cut off.

On the other hand, to take out the cartridge 6, the lid-opening button19 is depressed to cause the lid 8 to pop up, and then the lid 8 ismanually fully opened. In this state, the ejection mechanism 9 isstarted by key operation for being driven. When the ejection mechanism 9is driven, the tape cartridge 6 is lifted to the position allowing thesame to be taken up easily.

Next, the ejection mechanism 9 and the automatic cutting mechanism 12,which are operated by the single drive source, will be described indetail with reference to FIGS. 2 and 7. These figures show the cartridgecompartment 7 and component parts associated with the cartridgecompartment 7 with the apparatus casing 3 being removed therefrom. Adriving block 22 is comprised of a motor 31 fixed to a base frame 21 andserving as the single drive source, and a gear train linked to a mainshaft of the motor 31. One of the ejection mechanism 9 and the automaticcutting mechanism 12 is selectively operated by the driving block 22 viaa clutch mechanism 23. In this embodiment, on the base frame 21 fromwhich the print head 14 extends upright, there is arranged a compartmentcasing 24 defining the cartridge compartment 7, in a manner sandwichinga tape feed mechanism (not shown) between the base frame 21 and thecompartment casing 24 itself. Arranged on a bottom plate 24 a of thecompartment casing 24 is an election plate 25, described in detailhereinbelow (see FIGS. 5 and 6).

As shown in FIGS. 2, 3, 4, and 7, the clutch mechanism 23 is operated ina manner interlocked with the opening/closing operation of the lid 8.The clutch mechanism 23 transmits torque of the motor 31 to the ejectionmechanism 9 when the lid 8 is in its “open” state, and transmits thesame to the automatic cutting mechanism 12 when the lid 8 is in its“closed” state. The output end of ejection mechanism 9 is an ejectionplate 25 serving as a lift plate. When the ejection mechanism 9 isoperated, the ejection plate 25 is caused to move upward to lift thetape cartridge 6 mounted in the cartridge compartment 7. On the otherhand, the output end of the automatic cutting mechanism 12 is connectedto the scissors-like tape cutter 11 comprised of a stationary blade 11 aand a movable blade 11 b. When the automatic cutting mechanism 12 isoperated, the tape cutter 11 performs cutting operation for cutting aportion of the printing tape which has been brought to the tape cutter11.

The driving block 22 includes a worm (not shown) rigidly fitted on themain shaft of the motor 31, a worm wheel 32 mating with the worm, and agear 33 having a large width and coaxially fixed to the worm wheel 32.The torque of the motor 31 is transmitted through the worm and wormwheel 32 and the gear 33 to the clutch mechanism 23.

The clutch mechanism 23 is comprised of a first transmission gear 41mating with the gear 33, a second transmission gear 42 fixed to thefirst transmission gear 41, a clutch shaft 43 rotatably supporting thefirst transmission gear 41 and the second transmission gear 42, and aclutch arm 44 having a nail 44 a for causing the first transmission gear41 and the second transmission gear 42 to axially slide along the clutchshaft 43. The clutch arm 44 is supported on the base frame 21 in a stateurged by a coiled spring 45 such that the clutch arm 44 can advance andwithdraw. The clutch arm 44 has a trailing end thereof extending to aroot portion of the lid 8 (see FIG. 7).

In association with the clutch arm 44, a cam piece 46 extends downwardperpendicularly from the root portion of the lid 8. When the lid 8 isclosed, cam action of the cam piece 46 allows the clutch arm 44 towithdraw by the urging force of the coiled spring 45 to thereby causethe first transmission gear 41 and the second transmission gear 42 toslide backward, whereby the first transmission gear 41 is disengagedfrom a cutter-side input gear (referred to hereinafter) 71 while thesecond transmission gear 42 is caused to mate with the ejectionmechanism-side input gear (referred to hereinafter) 51. Inversely, whenthe lid 8 is opened, the cam action of the cam piece 46 causes theclutch arm 44 to advance against the urging force of the coiled spring45 to cause the first transmission gear 41 and the second transmissiongear 42 to slide in an opposite direction, whereby the firsttransmission gear 41 is caused to mate with the cutter-side input gear71 while the second transmission gear 42 is disengaged from the ejectionmechanism-side input gear 51 (see FIG. 4).

The ejection mechanism 9 is comprised of the ejection mechanism-sideinput gear 51 mating with the second transmission gear 42 of the clutchmechanism 23, a crankpin 52 projecting from an end face of the ejectionmechanism-side input gear 51, the ejection plate 25 for engagement withthe crankpin 52, and link means 53 for causing translation of theejection plate 25. It should be noted that an ejection mechanism recitedin CLAIMS includes the motor 31 in addition to the ejection mechanism 9described above.

As shown in FIG. 6, the link means 53 is comprised of a pair of frontand rear X-shaped links 55, 55, and a connecting arm 56 for connectingbetween the pair of X-shaped links 55, 55, and supported on the baseframe 21 by the connecting arm 56. The pair of X-shaped links 55, 55 arenot only supported on the base frame 21 but also engaged with theejection plate 25. More specifically, each of the X-shaped links 55 hastwo end portions at one of left and right sides thereof pivotallyattached to the base frame 21 and the ejection plate 25, respectively,and two end portions of at the other of left and right sides thereofattached to the base frame 21 and the ejection plate 25, respectively,in a pivotally movable and laterally slidable manner (see FIGS. 5 and6). This allows the ejection plate 25 to perform vertical translation(i.e. to be moved vertically) with respect to the base frame 21.

As shown in FIG. 5, the ejection plate 25, which is in the form of aplate, is formed with openings and cutouts for avoiding interferencewith the head cover 13, the take-up reel 16, and so forth. Further, theejection plate 25 has front and rear upright edges 61, 61 formed bybending front and rear portions of the ejection plate 25 upward forhaving the X-shaped links 55 attached thereto, respectively. The uprightedges 61 are each formed with a pin 62 and a slot 63 on and in which theX-shaped link 55 are attached. Further, the front side one of theupright edges 61 has a mid portion thereof formed with a crank slot 64in which the crankpin 52 projecting from the ejection mechanism-sideinput gear 51 is engaged.

That is, the crankpin 52 and the crank slot 64 form a crank mechanism.Rotation of the ejection mechanism-side input gear 51 causes verticalmovement of the ejection plate 25 via the crankpin 52 and the crank slot64, and at the same time, the translation of the X-shaped links 55causes the ejection plate 25 to move vertically while maintaining itslevel orientation. Reference numerals 65 in FIG. 5 designate threeprojections formed on the ejection plate. When a thinner tape cartridge6 is ejected, it is placed on the projections 65, while when a thickertape cartridge 6 is ejected, the projections 65 are fitted in groovesformed on an underside surface of the tape cartridge 6 and the undersidesurface is held in contact with a flat portion of the ejection plate 25(there are provided tape cartridges (printing tapes) 6 which aredifferent in thickness or tape width from each other).

On the other hand, the automatic cutting mechanism 12 is comprised ofthe cutter-side input gear 71 mating with the first transmission gear 41of the clutch mechanism 23, an input bevel gear 73 coaxially fixed tothe cutter-side input gear 71, an output bevel gear 74 mating with theinput bevel gear 73, and a crankpin 75 (see FIG. 2) projecting from anend face of the output bevel gear 74. The crankpin 75 is engaged with aholder 76 fixed to the movable blade 11 b of the tape cutter 11. Thatis, the crankpin 75 is fitted in a slot (not shown) formed in the holder76, thereby forming a crank mechanism with the slot. Accordingly, whenthe cutter-side input gear 71 rotates, the torque is transmitted to anintermediate gear 72, the input bevel gear 73, and the output bevel gear74, and the rotation of the output bevel gear 74 causes cuttingoperation (pivotal motion) of the movable blade 11 b about a supportshaft 11 c via the holder 76.

As described above, when the motor 31 is started for rotation (by keyoperation) in a “closed” state of the lid 8, the torque of the motor 31is transmitted to the tape cutter 11 via the automatic cutting mechanism12 and causes the tape cutter 11 to perform the cutting operation. Onthe other hand, when the motor 31 is started for rotation (by keyoperation) in an “open” state of the lid 8, the torque of the motor 31causes the ejection mechanism 9 to elevate the ejection plate 25,whereby the tape cartridge 6 is lifted from the cartridge compartment 7.It should be noted that the cutting operation of the tape cutter 11 isperformed by pivotal reciprocating motion of the movable blade 11 b fromits standby position and that the upward moving operation of theejection plate 25 is performed by vertical reciprocating motion of theejection plate 25 to and from its standby position which is lower thanthe location of the bottom plate 24 a of the compartment casing 24.Therefore, when the movable blade 11 b and the ejection plate 25 are attheir respective stop positions (standby positions), they are detectedby micro switches 81, 82, respectively, so as to stop the motor 31 (seeFIGS. 4 and 7).

Now, the relationship between the operation of the ejection plate 25from its standby position and the compartment casing 24 will bedescribed in detail with reference to FIGS. 5 and 8. As shown in FIG. 5,the compartment casing 24 has an inside thereof formed to have agenerally complementary shape to the tape cartridge 6, and on the bottomplate 24 a are erected the head cover 13 and the guide projection 17integrally formed with the bottom plate 24 a. Further, a pair of holdingnails 91, 91 are arranged on respective opposite sides of the bottomplate 24 a in a manner each facing inward (see FIG. 2). When the tapecartridge 6 is mounted, the pair of holding nails 91, 91 sandwich thetape cartridge 6 therebetween and press down the same, whereby the tapecartridge 6 mounted in the compartment casing (cartridge compartment 7)24 is held in an immovable state.

Further, three seat projections (seat members) 92, 92, 92 are integrallyformed with the compartment casing 24 at respective locations therein,for allowing the tape cartridge 6 mounted in the compartment casing 24(see FIG. 2) to be seated thereat. More specifically, the tape cartridge6 mounted in the compartment casing 24 is held in an immovable state bybeing sandwiched by the pair of holding nails 91, 91 and pressed againstthe seat projections 92 by the same. On the other hand, when the tapecartridge 6 is lifted from the compartment casing 24, it is placed onthe upper ends of the pair of holding nails 91, 91 and held in thelifted state even after the ejection plate 25 is lowered.

Now, the relationship between the pair of holding nails 91, 91 and thetape cartridge 6 for being lifted and lowered will be described withreference to FIGS. 9 and 10. As shown in these figures, each of theholding nails 91 is mounted on a side of the compartment casing 24. Theholding nail 91 is comprised of a nail element 101, an urging member102, and a coiled spring 103 interposed between the nail element 101 andthe urging member 102. The nail element 101 is attached to thecompartment casing 24 such that it can advance and withdraw, and aforward end 101 a of the nail element 101 projects into the compartmentcasing 24 by the urging force of the coiled spring 103 and retractstherefrom.

In this case, the tape cartridge 6 has side surfaces thereof each formedwith a sloped portion serving as an engaging portion 6 a, and theforward ends 110 a of the nail elements 101 press the respectiveengaging portions 6 a of the tape cartridge 6 mounted in the compartmentcasing 24, whereby the tape cartridge 6 is sandwiched between the nailelements 101 and pressed down (see FIG. 9). Further, the forward end 101a of each of the nail elements 101 has an upper half thereof formed as asloping surface. When the tape cartridge 6 is being loaded (lowered) inthe compartment casing 24, each of the nail elements 101 is pressed bythe tape cartridge 6 against the coiled spring 103 and once retractedinto the compartment casing 24, thereby permitting the tape cartridge 6to be mounted. Similarly, when the tape cartridge 6 is being lifted bythe ejection mechanism 9, the nail element 101 is pressed by the tapecartridge 6 against the coiled spring 103 and once retracted into thecompartment casing 24, thereby permitting the tape cartridge 6 to beremoved. Then, when the ejection plate 25 is lowered after completingthe lifting of the tape cartridge 6, the tape cartridge 6 is placed onthe nail elements (forward

The urging members 102 are also each attached to the compartment casing24 such that they can advance and withdraw. A trailing end 102 a of eachurging member 102 has a sloping surface. When an operating piece 8 a ofthe lid 8 is brought into abutment with the trailing end 102 a from aperpendicular direction (from above), the urging member 102 is advancedagainst the coiled spring 103 by a component of the force received fromthe operating piece 8 a. More specifically, in a state of the lid 8being open, each of the urging members 102 is held in its standbyposition by a stopper, not shown, and presses on the nail element 101with a small urging force by the coiled spring 103. When the lid 8 isclosed from this state, the operating piece 8 a causes the urging member102 to advance to thereby press on the nail element 101 with a largeforce via the coiled spring 103.

This permits the tape cartridge 6 to be mounted or removed with arelatively small force, and immovably held by a relatively large forcee.g. during printing operation. It should be noted that referencenumeral 93 in FIG. 5 designates a positioning projection for positioningthe tape cartridge 6. The tape cartridge 6 is seated on the seatprojections 92 in a state positioned by the positioning projection 93.

FIG. 8 shows a state in which the tape cartridge 6 is loaded in thecompartment casing 24, and the ejection plate 25 has been shifted to itsstandby position (standby state). The tape cartridge 6 is seated on theseat projections 92 in a state sandwiched by the pair of holding nails91, 91, while the ejection plate 25 including the projections 65 isplaced in its standby state at a position lower than the seatprojections 92. That is, the ejection plate 25 is on standby below thetape cartridge 6 while maintaining a space between the tape cartridge 6and the ejection plate 25 itself.

When the ejection plate 25 starts to be lifted from this state, the tapecartridge 6 is transferred from the seat projections 92 to the ejectionplate 25, and continues to be lifted while causing the pair of holdingnails 91, 91 to retract. When the ejection plate 25 reaches itsuppermost position, the holding nails 91 are disengaged from the tapecartridge 6. Subsequently, when the ejection plate 25 starts to belowered, the tape cartridge 6 is transferred from the ejection plate 25to the projected holding nails 91 such that it is placed on the same. Inthe meantime, the ejection plate 25 continues to be lowered until itreaches its standby position. On the other hand, when the tape cartridge6 is mounted, the ejection plate 25 is in its standby position(lowermost position), and the tape cartridge 6 is pushed inward againstthe urging force of the holding nails 91 to a position for abutmentagainst the seat projections 92 of the compartment casing 25, andmounted thereat.

As described above, according to the present embodiment, since the tapecartridge 6 mounted in the cartridge compartment 7 is seated not on theejection plate 25, but on the seat projections 91 of the cartridgecasing 24, it is possible to hold the tape cartridge 6 in a stable statewhile maintaining its level orientation. As a result, the printing tapecan be brought to the print head 14 and the platen 18 without beingrolled out in an inclined state from the tape cartridge 6. Further, whenthe tape cartridge 6 is mounted, the ejection plate 25 is held in itsstandby position (lowermost position) lower than the location of theseat projections 91, which makes it possible to prevent the user fromplacing the tape cartridge 6 in a half mounted state.

It should be noted that although in the above embodiment, the ejectionmechanism is driven by the motor, the present invention is applicable toan ejection mechanism driven by a spring or the like. Further, thenumber of the seat projections is not limited so long as a tapecartridge can be held in a stable state. Moreover, the ejection plate inits low standby position is only required to be positioned away from thetape cartridge, so that it is not necessary to set the standby positionat a location below the seat projections (assuming that a tape cartridgehas an underside surface which is not flat).

INDUSTRIAL APPLICABILITY

As described above, according to the tape printing apparatus of theinvention, since a tape cartridge mounted in the cartridge compartmentis seated not on the lift plate of the ejection mechanism, but on theseat portion of the cartridge compartment, it is possible to hold thetape cartridge in a stable and accurately positioned state for printing.That is, the cartridge-ejecting function implemented by the ejectionmechanism and the cartridge-holding function by the cartridgecompartment can be separately performed, which is suitable forpreventing the ejection mechanism from adversely affecting printingoperation.

What is claimed is:
 1. A tape printing apparatus including a cartridgecompartment for removably mounting a tape cartridge therein, and anejection mechanism for lifting said tape cartridge mounted, from saidcartridge compartment, characterized in that: said cartridge compartmenthas a bottom thereof formed with a seat portion for seating thereon saidtape cartridge in a mounted state, and a lift plate of said ejectionmechanism having a standby state and an actuated state, said lift platefor lifting a tape cartridge is positioned away from said tape cartridgeseated on said seat portion when said lift plate is in said standbystate and is in a lifting state for lifting said tape cartridge whensaid lift plate is in said actuated state.
 2. A tape printing apparatusaccording to claim 1, wherein said cartridge compartment has a supportmember arranged therein for holding said tape cartridge in a liftedstate, and wherein said lift plate immediately returns to its standbystate after having been lifted to transfer said tape cartridge to saidsupport member.
 3. A tape printing apparatus according to claim 2,wherein said support member also serves as a holding nail for immovablyholding said tape cartridge.
 4. A tape printing apparatus according toclaim 1, 2, or 3, wherein said seat portion is formed by three seatmembers arranged separately from each other.
 5. A tape printingapparatus according to claim 1, 2, or 3, wherein said ejection mechanismcomprises a lift plate for lifting a tape cartridge, link means forcausing translation of said lift plate such that said lift plate canlifted and lowered, and a motor for operating said link means.
 6. A tapeprinting apparatus according to claim 1, wherein said ejection mechanismcomprises a lift plate for lifting a tape cartridge, link means forcausing translation of said lift plate such that said lift plate can belifted and lowered, and a motor for operating said link means.